What to intake is a common concern during pregnancy. It’s because, at this time, pregnant women aren’t prioritizing themselves anymore. They have to be concerned more about the baby within their wombs.
While physical transformation is the most noticeable change you can point out to someone pregnant, there are psychological alterations that most women suffer from pregnancy too. These changes are often difficult to deal with it would be hard for some to cope up or adjust to their situation without their comfort food or drink, including wine.
The thing is drinking wine has been widely known to be associated with many health benefits. Does tippling a glass of wine influence the baby inside you? Let’s figure out what happens when you drink wine during early pregnancy here.
Possible Effects of Alcohol on Babies
As an adult, wine can be broken down by your liver into your blood. If you drink while pregnant, expect that the alcohol would go through your baby’s placenta and umbilical cord as well. Then, the baby’s small liver would also try to work hard on breaking down the alcohol.
However, the baby’s liver can’t do much and can’t take too much load because it’s still in the developmental stage. The fetus, then, can’t get rid of this of possible blood concentration as fast as you do. Consequently, the alcohol in the baby’s bloodstream may block either the nutrition or oxygen needed for the baby’s overall healthy growth.
Studies have shown that instances pregnant women who are into binge-drinking have been associated with detrimental results to the baby’s physical and mental health. The tendency is that alcohol slows down or harm the organ development and causes brain damage to the developing baby.
All of the said alcohol-related fetal health issues are under one medical term called fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). A 2017 report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Pediatrics claimed that one out of 13 drinking pregnant women is having a baby in her womb who is suffering from FASD.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is the most severe type of FASD. Its severity varies, in which some babies may experience FAS to a far greater degree compared to others. The following are a few of the potential physical defects on babies caused by FAS:
- Joints, fingers and limbs deformities
- Distinctive facial features, such as smaller eyes, or a short, upturned nose
- Smaller brain size or head circumference
- Vision and hearing difficulties
- Slower physical growth
- Bones, kidneys, and heart defects
On the other hand, here are some possible FAS-related central nervous system and cognitive disorders that may occur on babies:
- Hyperactivity
- Rapid change of moods
- Intellectual disability
- Learning disorders
- Poor coordination or balance
- Poor concentration
- Poor information processing
- Poor judgment skills
- Poor reasoning and problem-solving skills
- Poor memory
Ultimately, the abovementioned cognitive issues and physical disorders can lead to social and behavioural issues to the children as they grow older. For instance, the possible intellectual disability of children can cause difficulties at school. Consequently, this can be the main reason why a child can be a victim of bullying, which prompts the child’s personality disorders.
Does Red Wine Counts?
It’s worth mentioning that a glass red bordeaux blend or any wine varieties have positive advantages to women. A 5-ounce glass of wine can aid weight loss in general, according to the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. Biochemical compounds found in wine reduce blood sugar level and body fat level in our bodies.
That being so, red wine prevents diabetes, hypertension, stroke, and other heart diseases. These compounds are most of the time antioxidants. For instance, resveratrol increases the levels of the ‘good’ cholesterol or the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.
Resveratrol also supports heart health, improves muscle definition, prevents cell damage, and protects you from age-related mental changes. Another antioxidant found in wine called quercetin can fight against cancers, such as colon cancer.
What about during pregnancy? The debate between wine consumption and pregnancy appears to start after a ten years long British study was published in 2013. The study determined the balance abilities of the 10-year-olds, whose mother either drink or not drink wine during their pregnancy.
The results showed that those children whose mother drank moderately have better balance than those children of mothers who abstained from drinking at all. Moving forward, if you just figured out you’re pregnant for two months and have been drinking by then, you’re safe according to recent studies.
An article issued in Harvard Health Publishing reported that drinking wine during your first trimester is safer, so long as it is occasional drinking. Safe, moderate drinking refers to having one to two standard glasses of wine every week during the first three months of pregnancy.
In the past, people think that woman cannot drink during the pregnancy but present research said that wine not harmful for pregnant females. Rather, It has many benefits!